Peace Disturbed: Drugs, Fear & Death Investigated

Hong Kong customs officials seized 125kg of cocaine, valued at approximately $10.7 million, from a Ugandan national traveling from Johannesburg, South Africa, on November 24, 2025. The discovery coincides with testimony before a South African commission of inquiry revealing alleged corruption within law enforcement and its connection to international drug trafficking networks operating out of Ekurhuleni.

Ugandan Man Arrested in Hong Kong Drug Bust

The cocaine, compressed into bricks, was found within five suitcases carried by the 42-year-old Ugandan national. He had traveled from Uganda via Burundi and Nairobi to South Africa, where he claimed the drugs were delivered by unidentified individuals at a guesthouse in Ekurhuleni. He alleged he was provided with forged diplomatic travel documents and passed through South African customs without issue.

The courier then flew from Johannesburg to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, before boarding a flight to Hong Kong. Suspicion arose after landing in Hong Kong, and officials initially allowed him to proceed to a hotel in the Tsim Sha Tsui district before making the arrest.

Ekurhuleni as a Drug Trafficking Hub

The arrest occurred ten days after testimony was heard by the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry into police corruption and organised crime in Pretoria. A former police officer, known only as Witness D – Marius “Vlam” van der Merwe – testified about a “thriving ecosystem of complicity” between law enforcement and criminal syndicates in parts of Ekurhuleni.

Van der Merwe, who served in the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) until 2022, implicated elements within the EMPD, including the now-suspended deputy police chief, Julius Mkhwanazi, in alleged crimes ranging from facilitating cartel transport to murder cover-ups. Mkhwanazi denies these allegations.

Van der Merwe was murdered outside his home in Brakpan on December 5, 2025, less than three weeks after his testimony.

Investigating the Brakpan Pipeline

Prior to his death, Van der Merwe had been investigating drug syndicates operating in Ekurhuleni, specifically focusing on a network funneling drugs to Hong Kong. He identified a key figure known as “Bham,” allegedly a Nigerian national operating in Brakpan, and described a system where compromised law enforcement provided protection to the syndicate.

Investigations revealed that Wenden Avenue in Brakpan, locally known as “Lagos Street,” is a central hub for the drug trade. Recruitment occurs locally, while profits are channeled globally.

A source connected to this journalist identified Primrose Nozuko Ugwa Samane, also known as Pinky, Precious, Tanya or Memory, as an accomplice of Bham and a key recruiter of drug mules. Samane was previously arrested in 2016 at OR Tambo International Airport with heroin, but received a lenient sentence of three years’ correctional supervision and house arrest.

Samane has allegedly continued recruiting individuals, including Marlese Badenhorst, a South African woman arrested in Nepal in 2022 with 6 kilograms of heroin. Badenhorst was among inmates who escaped during a prison fire in Nepal in September 2025, and her current whereabouts are unknown.

Another South African, Lee Roy Smith, claims he was recruited by Bham under false pretenses and was caught attempting to smuggle heroin through Hong Kong airport in September 2023.

Authorities at OR Tambo International Airport maintain that statistics do not indicate an increase in security breaches, and that successful interceptions are a result of collaborative efforts between agencies. However, advocates like Father John Wotherspoon, who has been tracking these cases for decades, argue that security lapses persist and that the networks operate with impunity.

The investigation continues, with authorities attempting to dismantle the network and bring those responsible to justice.